Hemşin (
Armenian: Համշէն ''Hamshen'' or Համամաշէն ''Hamamashen'', literally "Hamam's Hamlet";
Laz and
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
: ზუგა ''Zuga''), is a town and district of
Rize Province in the
Black Sea region of
Turkey, 57 km from the city of
Rize.
Hemşin is a district of green hills 19 km inland from the
Black Sea. The area is the ethnic homeland of the
Hemshin peoples of Turkey, known for their tradition of
tea cultivation,
honey
Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...
,
hazelnut
The hazelnut is the fruit of the hazel tree and therefore includes any of the nuts deriving from species of the genus ''Corylus'', especially the nuts of the species ''Corylus avellana''. They are also known as cobnuts or filberts according t ...
s, traditional dress and song.
History
As part of the Rize province, Hemshin had been a refuge for some
Cimmerians and was a site of early Greek settlements and once part of the
Roman Empire and the succeeding
Byzantine Empire.
In the 8th century,
Armenian Prince
Hamam
A hammam ( ar, حمّام, translit=ḥammām, tr, hamam) or Turkish bath is a type of steam bath or a place of public bathing associated with the Islamic world. It is a prominent feature in the culture of the Muslim world and was inherited f ...
, his father Prince
Shapuh Amatuni
Amatuni ( hy, Ամատունի) is an ancient Armenian noble family, known from the 4th century in the canton of Artaz, between lakes Van and Urmia, with its center at Shavarshan (latter-day Maku), and subsequently also at Aragatsotn, west of L ...
, and their people migrated north to the
Black Sea region
The Black Sea Region ( tr, Karadeniz Bölgesi) is a geographical region of Turkey. The largest city in the region is Samsun. Other big cities are Trabzon, Ordu, Tokat, Giresun, Rize, Amasya and Sinop.
It is bordered by the Marmara Region to the ...
in order to escape
Arab invasions
The spread of Islam spans about 1,400 years. Muslim conquests following Muhammad's death led to the creation of the caliphates, occupying a vast geographical area; conversion to Islam was boosted by Arab Muslim forces conquering vast territories ...
of
Vaspurakan. They settled in the ruined city of Tambur and its surrounding villages. Prince Hamam rebuilt the city and named it Hamamshen ("Hamam's hamlet" in
Armenian), this becoming the nucleus of the modern district.
This
Principality of Hamamshen
The Principality of Hamamshen (Homshetsi dialect: , ''Eshakhutatun Hamamshen'') was a small principality established in about 790 by Armenians who fled the Arab invasions of Armenia and the creation of the Muslim Arab ruled state of Arminiya.
...
existed until the 14th century, when it was conquered by the
Ottoman Empire.
Demographics
The
Hemshin peoples ( hy, Համշէնցիներ, ; tr, Hemşinliler) are a diverse group of peoples who in the past or present have been affiliated with the region.
[Bert Vaux. ''Hemshinli: The Forgotten Black Sea Armenians''. Cambridge: Harvard University, 2001, pp. 1-2, 4-5.][Peter Alford Andrews, ''Ethnic Groups in the Republic of Turkey''. Wiesbaden, Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, 1989, pp. 476-477, 483-485, 491.][Hachikian, Hagop. "Notes on the Historical Geography and Present Territorial Distribution of the Hemshinili", in ''The Hemshin'', pp. 146-147.]
Climate
Hemşin has an
oceanic climate
An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...
(
Köppen: ''Cfb'').
See also
*
Hemshin peoples
*
Amatuni
*
Çamlıhemşin
Çamlıhemşin, formerly Vice, ( lzz, ვიჯა ''Vija'' or ვიჯე ''Vije'' ; ka, ვიჯა ''Vija'' ) is a small town and district of Rize Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey.
With its mountains and valleys in all shades of ...
*
Principality of Hamamshen
The Principality of Hamamshen (Homshetsi dialect: , ''Eshakhutatun Hamamshen'') was a small principality established in about 790 by Armenians who fled the Arab invasions of Armenia and the creation of the Muslim Arab ruled state of Arminiya.
...
References
External links
www.Hamshen.org a multi-language discussion forumArmenian History and Presence in Hemşin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hemsin
Populated places in Rize Province
Hemshin people
Districts of Rize Province